The very first city in Mindanao I've visited is its de facto capital, the well-known for Durian and the largest city in the Philippines: The City of Davao! As a traveler, me and a friend of mine managed to travel the King City of the South just for one day exploration last February 14, 2012 (
Valentine Escapade). This was actually a week after my
One Day Singapore Exploration. I had a 7AM flight departing from Mactan Cebu International Airport bound to Davao's Francisco Bangoy International Airport via Cebu Pacific Air (
less than an hour flight).
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| PHOTO: Me at Mactan Cebu International Airport |
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| PHOTO: Me at the Arrival Lounge of Davao's Francisco Bangoy International Airport |
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| PHOTO: Me in front of Davao's Francisco Bangoy International Airport |
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| PHOTO: People and Durian Monument outside Davao's Francisco Bangoy International Airport |
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| PHOTO: Me at Davao's Francisco Bangoy International Airport's Durian Monument |
From aiport, we then proceed to a port area to take a 10-minute boat ride that will guide us to the main destination: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island. This resort offers very affordable rate (much cheaper than those in Mactan Island, Cebu) for a Day Usage for both infinite pool & beach side. The weather went well upon visiting the island, the tranquility and peacefulness of the area is really fascinating, you'll gonna love the resort's ambiance, as well as their staff in providing quality customer service. Even though I wasn't able to try their waterpark facilities & activities, it was worth my visit to explore other parts of the place and Davao has always been an advocate of life, which I highly commend with the resort's effort to be an eco-friendly one (trees everywhere, refreshing place). We spent 8 hours in the resort (swimming, walking, taking shots, food tripping, etc.) and would really love to go back. You may refer to below shots taken during my visit there. (click photo to enlarge)
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| PHOTO: Me at Davao City Port heading to Samal Island |
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| PHOTO: Davao City Port heading to Samal Island |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Mt. Apo View at Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Blue Jaz Beach Resort & Waterpark in Samal Island, Davao City |
We then left the place at 5PM and went to Davao City proper just to check what the city looks like. I must agree that it's one of the cleanest cities in the Philippines but on that time, the flow of traffic tested my patience, seriously. I wasn't really able to explore the city as planned since most of my time was spent riding a taxicab. You may refer to below shots taken, nothing much with the city. (click photo to enlarge)
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| PHOTO: Famous Durian in Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Busy street in Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Billboard Ad in Davao City |
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| PHOTO: Shop in Davao City |
A bit afraid that we won't be able to catch up with our flight back to Cebu. Fortunately, we just arrived on time at exactly 8PM for check in and we had a 9PM returning flight to Cebu via Cebu Pacific Air. Refer to below shots of Davao City with its amazing city lights at night. (click photo to enlarge)
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| PHOTO: Departure Area of Davao's Francisco Bangoy International Airport |
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| PHOTO: Departure Area of Davao's Francisco Bangoy International Airport |
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| PHOTO: Departure Area of Davao's Francisco Bangoy International Airport |
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| PHOTO: Cebu Pacific Air Crew demonstrating Airline Safety Precautions |
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| PHOTO: Aerial shot of Davao City Lights at night |
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| PHOTO: Aerial shot of Davao City Lights at night |
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| PHOTO: Aerial shot of Davao City Lights at night |
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| PHOTO: Aerial shot of Davao City Lights at night |
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| PHOTO: Aerial shot of Davao City Lights at night |
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| PHOTO: Aerial shot of Davao City Lights at night |
But overall, the my Davao trip was a memorable one and promised to go back there soon. Well, actually I already have a roundtrip ticket for Kadayawan Festival this August and gonna party with you Davao! :)
Thanks for reading and comments highly appreciated! :D
